No time for down time? London's Heathrow recently opened the "Island," a pay-as-you-go airport lounge in Terminal 3. Open daily from 5 AM to 2 PM, admission is $36 per person and allows access to one of 29 showers, steam cleaning and shoe shining, satellite television, and Internet connections.

Whole New World

The allure of airports around the world continues to grow with each passing day as we discover a whole new world of travel. A world where the destination we touchdown at is first showcased by the airport, a ‘virtual window to the destination’ if not a ‘destination in itself’.

I am not confining my observations to the more developed western countries or any particular continent. Most developing countries, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, house the best airports in the world today in terms of size, design and amenities.

Airports are now compared with one another just as we would hitherto compare destinations. Hopping flights and lengthy stopovers are no longer a huge nuisance, in fact, I quite look forward to my favorite stopovers.

All of us have our personal favorites in airports I’m sure, whether it be the shopping, range of cuisine, amenities or simply the design and aesthetic appeal. From personal experience, I would concede (and I’m sure this is universal) that I find it easier to spend more money in just a few hours for various reasons at a great airport, than I would on a whole day out in a new city.

In this issue, Express Business Traveller offers you a glimpse of what some of the trendiest airports in the world have on offer to make your journey even more memorable.

The shopping bonanza continues as we showcase the Dubai Shopping Festival (even more than what the Dubai airport has to offer!) and browse through a whole range of timeless classics in our watch special, which coincides with the World Watch and Jewellery show in Basel this month.